


i'll always catch you

by kageyums



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Mutual Pining, Slow Build, its super fluffy, they just like each other a lot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-17
Updated: 2017-07-08
Packaged: 2018-11-15 05:24:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11224221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kageyums/pseuds/kageyums
Summary: "Oh my god, my milk bread!”Oikawa squeezed all the custard out of his milk bread and of course Iwaizumi can help.Alternatively: 5 times Iwaizumi caught Oikawa and one time he didn't.





	1. 5 times

1.  
Oikawa couldn't last.  
“Tooru, you have to wait until after dinner!” His mother’s voice echoed through his head, her chiding tone reminding him that what he was about to do was wrong.  
But he couldn’t stand the temptation.  
His fingers itched, dying to just reach inside the jar and pull out a cookie.  
They looked so delicious- baked only this morning by Iwa-chan’s mom. Lightly browned, with chewy edges and a soft middle. Dotted with the tell-tale brown spots of chocolate chips- Oikawa could only imagine what they would taste like if he sunk his teeth into one of them. He could imagine the delicious chunks of chocolate melting on his tongue, the delicious flavor spreading on his-  
He cut off his train of thought as he discovered drool had begun to drip down the side of his chin. He wiped it off before anybody could see, fingers still twitching towards the cookie jar. Should he? Should he not? He knew dinner was going to be hamburg steak, which he liked…. And Iwa-chan was coming over. If Oikawa finished before Iwa-chan because he was full, then that meant that Iwa-chan would have to stop eating because without a doubt Oikawa would force him to play. Oikawa loved playing with Iwa-chan, but he didn’t like it when Iwa-chan went home hungry because of him. _What a dilemma,_ he thought, eyeing the cookies again. _‘Iwa-chan or cookies? Iwa-chan or cookies?_  
“Oi, Bakakawa, what in the world are you doing?” Oikawa jumped nearly a foot in the air as a heavy hand landed on his shoulder.  
“Eek!” A very dignified noise escaped before he wheeled around, facing Iwa-chan himself. “Iwa-chan, what are you doing here?”  
“I came over to play, of course. Why else would I be here?” Iwa-chan raised a thick eyebrow at him, and Oikawa shuffled to reposition himself squarely in front of the cookie jar. “Are you okay, Oikawa? You’re acting kinda weird.”  
“N-No, why would I b-be? There’s nothing wrong, Iwa-chan!” He forced a laugh, nearly knocking over Iwaizumi as Oikawa hurried to push him out of the room. He knew Iwa-chan wouldn’t tell his mom, but he didn’t want Iwa-chan to think he had no willpower.  
“Oikawa…. Why is the cookie jar open?” Iwaiziumi’s voice was laced with suspicion, and Oikawa swallowed hard. He knew he had been caught.  
“I just.. I just…” Seeing Iwa-chan’s face somehow unleashed something inside of him and big fat tears started rolling down his cheeks. “Sorry, Iwa-chan, I wanted to eat a cookie so badly even though I knew we were going to play later and that you were coming over for dinner! I’m sorry I thought even for one second that the stupid cookie was more important than you are! You’re my bestest friend ever, okay?”  
“That goes without saying, dummy. Why are you so emotional today?” Iwaizumi snorted, hitting Oikawa in the back of the head. “Come on, wipe your snot, let’s go play soccer!”  
“I don’t wannaaa~” Oikawa escaped from Iwaizumi’s grasp, rubbing furiously at his eyes and nose. “I wanna play volleyball~”  
“I thought you were over volleyball by now?” Iwaizumi firmly grasped the back of Oikawa’s shirt, preventing him from running away.  
“Ah, but, volleyball is fun! I wanna keep playing with you, Iwa-chan~” Oikawa smiled his Typical Oikawa Smile and he could see Iwa-chan give in.  
“Fiiiiine. But next time we’re playing soccer,” he grumbled, knowing full well he’d play volleyball for as long as Oikawa wanted him to.  
“Whatever you say, Iwa-chan~”  
“Oh, yeah, Oikawa?”  
“Yeah?” Oikawa swiveled back around, volleyball already tucked under one arm.  
“I want a cookie.”  
Oikawa thought his face was going to crack from smiling.

2.  
The heavy thud of the ball landing on the court echoed in his ears.  
The sound was normally accompanied by the sound of cheering- his team laughing uproariously as they celebrated their victory against yet another tough opponent. But nobody was laughing now.  
Fists clenched in frustration, a hollow feeling in his chest, Oikawa walked over to where his teammates were waiting for him. All of them looked as if they were in pain, shoulders visibly stiffened and eyebrows furrowed.  
He could barely meet the eyes of Iwaizumi.  
 _If only he had gotten there just a second faster._  
He still felt the glancing blow of the volleyball against his forearms, the panic seizing in his chest as he realized in that second that they were going to lose.  
All this time he had been focused on Shiratorizawa only to be crushed by Karasuno.  
He could hear Tobio-chan and Shrimpy-chan and their team slapping their congratulations, their shouts of victory echoing throughout the court.  
He could hear their coach saying something, talking about a “next time” and words of undeserved praise.  
He could hear their teammates whisper consolations to each other.  
He could hear the pounding of the blood in his head.  
He could hear the last smack of the ball against the court, over and over again.

There was nothing Oikawa wanted to do more than crawl under his bed, wedge himself into a tight space, and block out the world for a few days. Or a few weeks. But he knew he had to pull himself together- he was the captain, after all.  
“It’s okay everyone, you all did your best!” He plastered a smile onto his face, slightly relieved all of them had their heads bowed so they couldn’t see the feigned expression on his face. All of them but Iwaizumi. While Iwaizumi had his fists clenched together- veins in his arms standing out- with tears streaming down his face, he kept his gaze fixed on Oikawa. He knew Iwaizumi could see right through him.  
“You guys fought well,” the coach commended, face solemn but proud. And the tears began to flow. Watari wiped his face against his jersey, while Matsukawa’s shoulders trembled. Oikawa could feel the burn of tears, threatening to spill over. As if he was going to give Tobio-chan the satisfaction. He cleared his throat slightly, tearing his eyes away from Iwaizumi’s gaze to turn to everyone in the team.  
“Listen up, guys!” All eyes were on him. Oikawa smiled again, and this time it was a little less forced. This was his team, after all. They had worked so hard over the past few years, giving their all into this sport. Whether they lost or they won, he would treasure the times he had with them. “Matssun, Makki, Iwa-chan, I’m so glad I could spend the last three years with you. This is the end of our time as volleyball players in high school, and I’m looking forward to seeing how much further we go.” Matsukawa and Hanamaki bore tentative grins, and Oikawa knew there was no way he was going to let their friendship end with high school. “Yahaba-chan, I know you’re worried about having to fill my shoes. I know I’m pretty great~” At this Iwa-chan looked ready to punch him in the face, so he hurried to conclude his sentence. “But I also know that you’re talented too, Yahaba-chan. So don’t worry about the past, and focus on your future. Got it?” He did his Typical Oikawa Wink® and Yahaba-chan bowed.  
“Thank you, senpai!” He shouted, even as his shoulders trembled and tears continued to stream down his face.  
“Mad dog-chan, well, you just listen to Yahaba-chan and improve your attitude, okay? You have the natural athleticism and power. You just have to hone it. Sharpen your fangs, eh, Mad dog-chan?” Kyoutani barely seemed to have heard him, and the only acknowledgement Oikawa got was a tiny grunt. “I’ll buy you Kara-age kun if you win, okay?~” At this Kyoutani swiveled his head around to face Oikawa and nodded once.  
“Watari-chan, it was reassuring to have you watch my back these past two years. Keep working hard, okay?” Watari paused in his furious face-wiping to bow and yell his thanks at the comment.  
“Kindaichi, you’re only a first-year, so use these next few years to improve as much as you can, okay? You have your height, and your blocks will improve over time. Keep up the good work!”  
“Th-th-th-thank you!” Kindaichi bowed stiffly, eyes still streaming tears.  
“And Kunimi, I know you’re smart, and you have a good eye. Try not to skip practice, okay? I know you have a lot of potential.” Oikawa patted Kunimi once on the head, much to the annoyance of the first-year. Kunimi had yet to appear upset, although Oikawa knew he had to care to a certain extent. “And I hope there comes a time where you fall in love with volleyball, so much that you won’t be able to stop practicing.” He winked, and Kunimi nodded once.  
“Oikawa-senpai, thank you very much!”  
And with that, they left the gym.  
It wasn’t until much later that Oikawa let himself finally feel the frustration and disappointment he had been holding back through sheer willpower. He slammed the door to his bedroom shut, both thankful and resentful that none of his family was home.  
Fat tears welled in his eyes, slowly dripping down in his cheeks. He wanted nothing more than to curl up in a ball on his bed, so that was exactly what he did. He cocooned himself in a nest of blankets, fisting the fabric so tightly he thought they might rip.  
The more he thought about it, the more angry he was. At himself, at Tobio-chan, even at things that nobody could control. Like the fact that he had to skip practice once because he had a cold.  
 _‘If I had practiced more then, maybe I would have made that serve. Maybe my tosses could have been a bit more accurate.’_ He couldn’t stop the images from consuming his thoughts, obsessing over his loss and what could have been.  
His shoulders shaked, eyes swollen and nose running. And Iwa-chan… he had let his childhood friend down. He knew Iwa-chan probably blamed himself for every time he got blocked, every time his spikes got received. But Oikawa was the one who had given him the toss, so when it came down to it, every time Iwa-chan failed to score, the one to blame was Oikawa.  
“Everything is my fault- that’s probably what you’re thinking right now, isn’t it, Shittykawa?”  
And with that Iwaizumi kicked him so hard he went flying off the bed in a mess of pillows and blankets.  
“Wh-wh-what the hell? Iwa-chan, what are you doing here?” Oikawa stuttered, trying to wipe up the mess of snot running down his face.  
“I knew you were probably wallowing in a hole of self pity, so I climbed in through your window.” Iwaizumi stated, as if this was something most people did.  
“Iwa-chan, if you wanted to see me so badly, you could’ve used the front door like normal people,” Oikawa tried to joke, though he knew it didn’t have much effect, seeing as tears were still dripping down his cheeks and his voice shook.  
“Oikawa.”  
“Yes?”  
“Shut the fuck up for one second.”  
“....Okay.”  
Iwaizumi took a deep breath, arms crossed. “You’re pretty fucking self-absorbed, aren’t you?” Oikawa’s mouth dropped open, so wide he was in danger of inhaling a fly. He wasn’t sure what he expected, but for Iwa-chan to yell at him wasn’t one of those things. “Who do you think you are, huh?”  
“Wh-what?” Oikawa just stared at Iwaizumi in bewilderment as he continued to rant.  
“If it wasn’t for your tosses, we wouldn’t have scored the points that we did make. If it wasn’t for your fucking-scary-as-shit-if-I’m-being-honest serves, we wouldn’t have scattered their defense and scored as much points as we did. I wouldn’t ask for anybody else on my team, because I know you have my back. You bring out our potential in a way that nobody else can. You may not be a genius like Kageyama-kun, but you’re a fucking legend to me. We may not have won, but we sure as hell did put up a good fight. And it wouldn’t have been possible without you.” Iwaizumi had stepped closer with every sentence, and now his face was nearly touching Oikawa’s, one finger pushed angrily against Oikawa’s chest.  
Oikawa could only stare in bewilderment, slightly shocked yet...pleased. A warm feeling began to spread throughout his chest, and tears sprang anew in his eyes.  
“Iwa..Iwa-chan…” He sniffled. “You...You really care about me, don’t you? Aw, Iwa-chan, that’s cute- Ow, ow, ow, okay, I’m sorry!” He swatted at Iwaizumi’s hand, fixing his mussed hair. “I...I got it. But...it’s frustrating you know?” His shoulders heaved once, twice, before he started crying anew. Iwaizumi didn’t say anything, only wrapped his arms around Oikawa, settling Oikawa’s face against the crook of his neck.  
“I wanted to win, Iwa-chan. I wanted to go to nationals and defeat everyone there.” Oikawa whispered, words slurred and nose running against Iwa-chan’s neck.  
“I know.”  
“I wanted to crush Tobio-chan and show him that our team, with six strong players, is stronger.”  
“I know.”  
“I wanted to make you shine, overshadow Karasuno’s ace.”  
“I know.”  
“I wanted to _win,_ Iwa-chan.”  
“I know.” The last words were broken, and Oikawa felt something wet drip onto the back of his neck.  
“I’m so frustrated. I’m _so frustrated,_ Iwa-chan. All our hard work, everything we worked for…. Wasted in a few seconds. And there’s nothing I can do about it. All those nights we spent practicing, it amounted to nothing? I can’t… I can’t accept that, Iwa-chan.” Iwaizumi’s shoulders were shaking as well, now, and Oikawa wrapped his arms around Iwa-chan’s middle, squeezing as hard as he could without strangling the ace.  
“Oikawa, you did all that you could. I’m so proud of you.” The words were mumbled, and Oikawa could barely hear them, but they did something to soothe the ache in his heart. To know that at least someone knew how hard he had tried...He was glad.  
They held each other for a long time until the pain in their hearts had faded to a dull ache.

3.  
Oikawa was avoiding bringing up the topic.  
The end of high school was fast approaching, and he knew he couldn’t skirt around it anymore. But he also didn’t want to ask Iwaizumi.  
He had a lot of offers related to volleyball, of course, but he knew with his grades and naturally fast learning pace, he could get into any school he wanted. Iwa-chan, on the other hand, he wasn’t so sure about. Honestly, Oikawa wanted nothing more than to just move in with the idiot. He understood Oikawa in a way that nobody else did, could read him so easily. Oikawa could easily imagine a life with Iwa-chan, of them living together until they were old and wrinkly. He had been planning to give up a life filled with volleyball to live a peaceful life in this town, pursuing some mundane career.   
So when he got a scholarship from a prestigious school he had always dreamed of attending, he didn’t know how to feel. Because the school was in Tokyo. And definitely not anywhere near where Iwaizumi was considering attending. He couldn’t just ask Iwaizumi to leave everything behind just for him. Although he knew Iwaizumi would probably do it without hesitation, it would nag on his conscience, that Iwaizumi would give something so important up for him.   
So Oikawa would wait. He would wait for Iwaizumi to choose a school, and Oikawa would go to the nearest one from which he had offers.  
Yet he still doubted. He was antsy, nervous as graduation drew closer and closer, without a word from Iwa-chan. He didn’t know how to bring it up, somehow nervous of rejection even though it was just Iwa-chan.  
“Oi, Trashykawa, why are you drifting off now?” Iwa-chan’s voice shook Oikawa back to reality. “You’re ruining your milk bread....and your uniform.”  
“Oh my god, my milk bread!” Oikawa looked down at his uniform. He had gotten a special kind of milk bread- stuffed with custard, sold only on Fridays in the cafeteria. But while he was lost in his thoughts, he had managed to squeeze all the custard out of the bread and onto himself. “Damn it!”  
“Ugh, Oikawa, here, let me do it, you’re making it worse.” Iwaizumi pulled tissues out of his schoolbag, wiping up the mess on Oikawa’s pants and using the remaining tissues to pat at the remaining custard around Oikawa’s mouth. “You’re such a messy eater, how does anybody see the appeal in you?”  
Oikawa chuckled, used to Iwaizumi’s false insults. “Aw, Iwa-chan, you should say that to my fanclub~” He leaned in closer to Iwaizumi, feeling a bit like teasing him. “And you can’t say you don’t see my appeal~”  
Iwa-chan, for some reason, didn’t respond with an insult or noogie him, which was a first. In fact, he only stared at Oikawa blankly.  
“Hello? Iwa-chan, did I break you?” With that, Iwaizumi blinked once, twice, before standing up and kicking Oikawa.  
“Owwww, Iwa-chan!”  
“Oikawa… spill the beans. What’s going on with you?” Iwaizumi knocked one of his fists against Oikawa’s forehead playfully. “I can tell something’s bothering you, you airhead.”  
“Iwa-chan, I know you’re jealous of my brain cells but destroying them is a bit-“ Oikawa whined, swatting at Iwaizumi’s hand. Shit. He had already been found out.   
“Oikawa. Seriously.” Iwaizumi frowned at him, sitting back down next to him. The wind blew through his hair, ruffling it.   
It was just them two, sitting on top of the roof. They always retreated here during lunch, to avoid the mobs of fangirls that prowled through the hallways looking for Oikawa. Mattsun and Hanamaki joined them most of the time, but today they were busy writing their college applications. It seemed that college was the only thing any of them had on their minds. The school’s atmosphere was stressed, as everyone compared their chances of getting into their dream schools. Yet even though Oikawa had heard nearly everybody’s university prospects, he hadn’t heard a single word from Iwaizumi.  
But he couldn’t say anything, so he just sat there and scratched the back of his head, laughing awkwardly. “It’s nothing, Iwa-chan~ You worry too much!”   
Iwa-chan stared at him for a second, without saying anything. Then he sighed, grabbed his bag, and began digging through it. Multiple things came out- an unused tub of hair gel, several old, stubby pencils, and an extra pair of gym shorts. It seemed that Iwaizumi had basically emptied the entire contents of his backpack before he found what he was looking for. He dug a colorful but severely crumpled piece of paper out of his bag and handed it, almost shyly, to Oikawa. He busied himself with putting everything back in his bag as Oikawa smoothed out the paper and read it.  
His heart almost stopped.  
“Iwa-chan… you’ve been looking for apartments in Tokyo?” He felt the tears well up in his eyes without his permission, threatening to spill over as he continued scanning the brochure. On the front was a glossy picture of a high rise apartment, advertised as being near the center of the city. The rent was surprisingly cheap for such a nice apartment; Oikawa assumed the rooms were probably going to be tiny. But he couldn’t care less. He didn’t have any words for the swell of happiness inside of him, and the flood of relief at the realization that he wouldn’t have to leave Iwaizumi any time soon.   
“I.. I know you got an offer. At that really good school. Your mom told my mom. And… I don’t mind leaving this small town. Time to expand my horizons, you know? There’s a college near there that I’d like to look at. And anyways-“ Iwaizumi broke off as Oikawa burst into tears and launched himself at Iwaizumi, wrapping his arms around his neck.  
“Iwa-chan~ You’re the best~” He sobbed, dripping snot all over Iwaizumi’s uniform.  
“Yeah, yeah,” Iwaizumi sighed, patting Oikawa on the back. “I know."

4.  
Iwaizumi just knew that asshole was still in the gym.  
Iwaizumi had told him, over and over, that he shouldn’t overwork himself. But he couldn’t help the nightmares he knew Oikawa had every night. The feeling of loss, the feeling of defeat, the feeling that Oikawa couldn’t overcome. The way he drove himself to exhaustion - Iwaizumi knew the dark circles under Oikawa’s eyes weren’t just from studying anymore. Oikawa never studied, yet he got good grades on all his tests anyways. When Iwaizumi had asked him how, Oikawa had only winked and said, _“It’s because I have a brain, unlike you, Iwa-chan~”_ Of course, Iwaizumi had promptly kicked his ass until he begged for forgiveness.  
Iwaizumi smiled at the memory. He clutched his pen tightly, glancing at the clock. It was nearing midnight, and he had almost finished his essay. The words blurred before his eyes, the neatly written kanji fading together. He blinked hard, trying to clear his hazy vision. Instead of refocusing back on the paper, however, his gaze landed on his phone, sitting a few feet away on his bed.  
Back to the paper.  
Back to the phone.  
Back to the paper.  
Back to the phone.  
“Curse that dumbass,” Iwaizumi groaned, putting down his pen and picking up his phone. He tapped on Oikawa’s contact info (under Oikawaii~<3<3 with an alien emoji, done by none other than Oikawa himself), leaning back in his chair as he waited for Oikawa to pick up. It rang once, twice, before he got the dial tone. Oikawa _did not just._ The fucking idiot had hung up on him. Well, Iwaizumi wasn’t giving up anytime soon. It was just around the twenty first call that Oikawa finally picked up.  
“Iwa-chan, why are you so obsessed with me?” Oikawa’s voice was teasing, but Iwaizumi could hear the nervous edge to his voice.  
“Oikawa?”  
“Yes?”  
“Are you still at the gym?”  
“No, why would I be?” It was obvious he was lying- it was clear in Oikawa’s voice. “Aw, Iwa-chan, were you worried about me?”  
“Bakakawa, didn’t I tell you to go home at six? Why are you still there now?” Iwaizumi ignored the part about being worried. Of course he was worried. He was always worried when it came to Oikawa.  
“Just as I thought- I always get caught by Iwa-chan when I try to lie. You see right through me~”  
“Answer the question, idiot.”  
“I wanted to practice my tosses. I have new teammates now, you know, and everyone is really good. So I gotta get even bett-” There he went, obsessed with the idea of improving until nobody could catch up to him. Iwaizumi was so done with his shit.  
“Listen, I have a class at eight A.M., so you can either come home now so I can go to sleep without any worries, or you can practice a few extra hours, damaging your body, while I get absolutely no sleep waiting for you to come home.”  
Oikawa was strangely silent, and Iwaizumi just knew he was about to be insulted.  
“...Okay,” Oikawa breathed, voice still quiet. “I’ll come home.”  
Iwaizumi was pretty sure he was dreaming. “Huuuuuh? When’s the last time you listened to me?”  
“Iwa-chan, I made you coffee this morning because you asked me to!” Iwaizumi rolled his eyes; he could hear the pout in Oikawa’s voice.  
“That’s...different. Anyways, do you have any way of getting home? And don’t even think about walking, you know how these streets are dangerous nowadays.” Oikawa _would_ be the first person to ever get abducted by an alien for being too pretty.  
“......I don’t. My ride went home because he didn’t want to wait for me to finish.”  
“Ugh. Stay there. I’ll be there in ten minutes.” Thankfully Oikawa’s gym was relatively close to their apartment, so it didn’t take long for Iwaizumi shrug on a hoodie and grab his motorcycle helmets.  
The night breeze felt nice against his body as he rode down the street, buildings passing by in a blur. It let him have a moment of peace before he faced Oikawa, knowing that any conversation involving discussing Oikawa’s issues with moderation was going to be exhausting. Mostly because Oikawa _never listened._  
Unfortunately the ride was over all too soon, and Iwaizumi parked his bike in front of the gym entrance, leaving both helmets in the doorway.  
Oikawa had just started another jump serve, and Iwaizumi watched, transfixed, as Oikawa slammed the ball cleanly onto the other side of the court in a matter of seconds.  
He had improved _a lot._ Oikawa’s last game that Iwaizumi had watched was the one he had been in- the last game of their time at Seijoh. Oikawa kept his school life relatively separate from his life with Iwaizumi, and had never invited Iwaizumi to any of his games. It was clear in that time, Oikawa had gotten better by leaps and bounds. His serves were clearly more powerful, more precise, and even his form had improved somehow. Yet he knew Oikawa would never be satisfied with the level he was at now.   
“Oikawa.”  
Oikawa turned at the sound of Iwaizumi’s voice, clearly not having noticed him come in.  
“Ah, Iwa-chan. You’re early!” He chirped cheerfully, one hand reaching up to wipe at his brow. Iwaizumi followed the movement, watching the bead of sweat roll down his face and drop off his chin. Damn it, everything about Oikawa was mesmerizing- from the way his freaking sweat dripped down his face to the way he held himself and talked. But Iwaizumi knew those were trivial thoughts, and instead concentrated on the matter at hand.  
“I told you last time, Oikawa-“ He started, before Oikawa cut him off.  
“I know, I know. Obsession with perfection, moderation, all that. I _know,_ Iwa-chan. It’s just that… we’ll never win if I don’t practice like this. I wasn’t born a natural genius like Tobio-chan. I have to actually work hard, you know?” He cracked his typical Oikawa grin, and something inside Iwaizumi broke.   
Of course all these years Oikawa was still fixated on his past; on Tobio-chan. Oikawa was one to never forget, especially if it involved something he thought was his fault. He was basically an elephant. It broke Iwaizumi’s heart to see that no matter how well Oikawa did, he could never see how he was good enough already. He was always trying to be someone he wasn’t, pushing himself to the point where it was unhealthy.  
“Oikawa, you-“ He stopped himself as his voice cracked. Oikawa’s eyes widened, just as surprised as Iwaizumi was to see tears well up in Iwaizumi’s eyes.   
“Iwa-chan, are you…”   
“No.” He scrubbed furiously at his eyes, erasing all evidence. “I’m just… I’m just worried for you, idiot. Please. Be careful. I don’t want you to get hurt.” He stared at the ground, trying to will himself out of existence. He could hear as Oikawa walked over to him, and startled as he felt a soft hand on his cheek. He lifted his chin to stare at Oikawa, who stared at him with wonder in his eyes.  
“I’ll.. I’ll stop.” Oikawa whispered tentatively, hand still on Iwaizumi’s face. His touch was so gentle that Iwaizumi could barely feel it, yet it both comforted him and made him want to cry even more. “I’ll.. leave when you tell me to.”  
“O-Okay.” iwaizumi swallowed, taking a step backwards involuntarily from the intensity of Oikawa’s gaze. Oikawa’s eyes followed the movement, watching as his throat bobbed. He said it one more time, just to fill the silence. “Okay.”  
“Let me clean up then. I’ll be done in two minutes.” He hurried to pick up the scattered balls and put them back in the cart.   
“I’ll help, dumbass.” Iwaizumi said, voice rough. He picked up the last remaining balls and passed them to Oikawa. Oikawa flashed him a grateful smile. “I brought you a helmet. It’s near the entrance.” They both exited the gym, picking up the helmets on the way.   
“Ugh, the bike always scares me.” Oikawa shuddered, putting the helmet over his sweaty hair. “And the helmet always messes up my hair.”  
“Wanna walk home?” Iwaizumi threatened, swinging a leg over the bike and starting it.   
“Nooo, Iwa-chan~ I was just joking.” Oikawa got on behind Iwaizumi, arms naturally wrapping around his waist.   
They took off, heading back home. Although the night air had felt refreshing before, it felt cold against his skin as Oikawa warmed his back with his touch. And though he felt Oikawa’s grip tighten and his cheek press against Iwaizumi’s back, he remained quiet and smiled at the stars. 

5.  
Iwaizumi began to notice it six years after they had moved in together.  
“Iwa-chan, come watch this movie with me!” Oikawa had basically jumped on his back, thrusting a plastic DVD case in his face.  
“We have a DVD player?” Iwaizumi grumbled, shaking Oikawa off and grabbing the DVD case. It had a terribly designed cover- who in the world thought that Comic Sans was a good font for a sci-fi movie? A giant, crudely designed slug with bodybuilder arms and legs stood in front of a tall building in the middle of exploding. Someone had copied and pasted a pair of pixelated glasses onto the slug.  
“This…. Is the worst looking movie I’ve ever seen.” Iwaizumi sighed. Oikawa had a knack for finding absolutely terrible sci-fi movies.   
Six years. Six years they had lived together- moving into a tiny apartment in the middle of Tokyo right after high school. Thankfully, they had both received full scholarships from their respective universities and could focus all their money on paying rent. It was a small, one bedroom, one bathroom apartment. The kitchen was about as big as the bathroom, and the living room was basically nonexistent. They had managed to cram two extra long twin beds in the bedroom, and the bathroom was always cluttered with Oikawa’s hair products.   
It was perfect for them.  
Even after they had both graduated and found jobs, they had never once spoken about moving out. Although Iwaizumi knew he couldn’t afford the rent by himself if Oikawa moved out. He knew Oikawa was more than capable of doing so; he made almost triple Iwaizumi’s salary. Curse those good looks. No matter what Oikawa said, the human resources manager was definitely gay and Oikawa’s ass had definitely influenced the high salary position he landed.  
“Iwa-chan, are we going to watch it or not?” Oikawa snatched the DVD back and shook it in front of Iwaizumi’s face. Iwaizumi blinked, then nodded.  
“Uh, sure.” He forgot temporarily what he agreed to, then remembered the giant, bodybuilding slug and groaned internally. Whatever, he had already agreed to it. No point in backing out now. Oikawa skipped (skipped! Iwaizumi hated when Oikawa skipped) to the dusty DVD player, blowing on it once to get rid of the dust, and popped the DVD in. He turned on the TV before flouncing onto their miniscule sofa, gesturing at Iwaizumi to join him.  
“Come! Come!” He giggled, patting the tiny space on the seat next to him.  
Iwaizumi sighed, but complied, squeezing onto the sofa beside Iwaizumi. The sofa was so small that it pressed Iwaizumi’s hip against Oikawa’s, legs flush against each other. The warmth crept up through Iwaizumi’s leg and spread throughout his body, and he relaxed into the soft, well worn cushions as the movie started and the giant slug appeared to destroy the city.  
It was a truly terrible movie.   
Straight up awful. Five minutes into the movie and Iwaizumi was already distracted. It seemed the entire plot of the movie was finding a way to stop the indestructible slug as it slowly (very slowly) advanced towards the city, punching everything it encountered. The legs were just for decoration.  
He couldn’t help but glance at Oikawa ever so often. Just to check what he was doing. Oikawa remained fascinated by the movie, eyes glued to the television and mouth gaping open. Occasionally he gasped as the slug was hit by a particularly strong punch, or another car exploded from slug slime. Iwaizumi had to hide a smile at that. Of course Oikawa would be enraptured by such a dumb, terrible movie. It was just one of the things Iwaizumi liked about him.  
And…  
Iwaizumi did.  
He liked Oikawa.  
It had only taken him about a million years to find out. But he did. The few times Oikawa hadn’t come home because he had been out with some girl, he had been unable to fall asleep until he heard the door open and close in the early hours of the morning. Every time Oikawa prattled on excitedly about some new girlfriend, Iwaizumi had smiled half-interestedly and tuned him out. Of course, that’s what Iwaizumi did most of the time. But those times he had to try really hard.   
He had tried, once. To fall in love with someone else. He tried so hard. It was with a quiet, older man at his workplace, who sneaked glances at Iwaizumi when he thought Iwaizumi wasn’t looking. But Iwaizumi had noticed, and they had hooked up a few times. It was easy, and effortless. And it confirmed Iwaizumi’s sneaking suspicion that he was really very gay. But when the man told him he had begun developing feelings, Iwaizumi had to break it off.  
He couldn’t fall in love with anyone else.  
Iwaizumi sneaked another glance at Oikawa, and startled when he realized that Oikawa had torn his gaze off of the television screen to stare at Iwaizumi.  
They looked at each other for a second, and Iwaizumi’s heart skipped a beat.   
And his breathing very nearly stopped when he noticed that, in a split second, Oikawa’s gaze had dropped from his eyes to his lips. And his involuntary knee-jerk reaction was to glance at Oikawa’s lips in turn.  
The movie faded to background noise, and all he could focus on was the beautiful brown hair boy that he had grown up with, that he had suffered and celebrated with, that he had fallen in love with. It felt almost surreal as Oikawa leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss against his lips.  
Everything fell into place, and never before had a moment felt so right.


	2. 1 time

“You ain’t slick,” Iwaizumi grumbled as Oikawa slid his hand into Iwaizumi’s gloved one, making some excuse about his hands being cold.  
“Excuse you, Iwa-chan, I’m blessing you right now by holding hands with you! Who else would want to hold your hand, you big ogre?” Oikawa stuck his tongue out several times like the immature brat he was, and Iwaizumi restrained himself from hitting Oikawa in the head, seeing as it was New Year’s Eve and he had to start off the year on the right note.  
They were visiting the shrine together, a trip Oikawa had been planning since Christmas ended. Speaking of Christmas, they had spent it together, wrapped in a bundle of blankets and sipping hot cocoa as they watched trashy Christmas movies.  
It was the best Christmas Iwaizumi had ever had.  
“Iwa-chan, what are you thinking about now?” OIkawa waved his other hand in front of Iwaizumi’s face, and Iwaizumi frowned. Oikawa’s hands were turning red from the cold.  
“How many times did I remind you to bring your gloves and scarf?” He faced Oikawa, brow furrowed.  
“Sorry, Iwa-chan~” Oikawa said, not sounding the least bit sorry.  
“Guess I have no other choice,” Iwaizumi grumbled, letting go of Oikawa’s hand to pull off his glove. He handed it to Oikawa, who just stared at him, confused. “For your other hand, you idiot. You’re keeping this hand warm, r-right?” He cursed himself as he stuttered, the slight blush rising to his cheeks betraying how nervous he felt.  
It hadn’t been very long since they started dating, though they did exactly the same activities as they had before. Going to the movies together, sitting in close proximity, putting each other first… these were all things they were used to doing, and so the change wasn’t very significant. He just had the official title of ‘boyfriend’, and that was all.  
Of course, things were different since he and Oikawa kissed, and could do other...risqué actions, but..  
They hadn’t really gotten to that stage yet. For now, Iwaizumi was content watching Oikawa’s face split into a grin as he accepted the glove happily.  
“Iwa-chan, I’m so happy, this is our first shrine visit together~” Oikawa chirped, swinging their interlinked arms back and forth like a little kid. Which he was. A little kid.  
“Oikawa, I’m pretty sure that this is our twenty first shrine visit together. Hell, our parents probably visited the shrines together when our moms were pregnant.” Iwaizumi pointed out.  
“Yeah, but it’s our first shrine visit where we’re _together_ together, you know?” Oikawa’s cheeks flushed, and Iwaizumi blinked, trying his best not to show that he was suffering from major heart palpitations.  
“Yeah, yeah,” Iwaizumi said, tone dismissive, but he knew Oikawa could read right through him. He could see it in the way Oikawa just smiled, still blushing, and looked shyly in the other direction. Just as Iwaizumi could always catch Oikawa’s bullshit, Oikawa had always been able to catch Iwaizumi’s.  
Iwaizumi just wasn’t used to being all coupley. They were still new to this, after all.  
They made their way through the throngs of people, heading towards the shrine. As they stood in line waiting to pay respects, Iwaizumi thought about what he would wish for. In that moment, he felt so fulfilled being by Oikawa’s side that nothing entered his mind. He watched Oikawa think, brow furrowed, as they neared the offering hall. Iwaizumi smiled to himself at Oikawa’s struggle to come up with a wish. He poked Oikawa in the cheek, startling the other out of his thoughts.  
“Iwa-chan, you meanie,” Oikawa whined, rubbing at his cheek even though Iwaizumi hadn’t poked that hard. “I was trying really hard to come up with a prayer!”  
“You’re going to get wrinkles if you frown that hard,” Iwaizumi said by way of explanation, and Oikawa instantly brightened.  
“Oh! Nice save, Iwa-chan!” Oikawa smiled, and Iwaizumi was so ridiculously in love with the idiot that he couldn’t help but lean in and press a kiss to Oikawa’s cheek. He could hear some titters around them, but he chose to ignore it. He didn’t care about what others thought of their happiness.  
It was finally their turn, and they stepped up to the offering hall, throwing a coin in the offering box. Iwaizumi clapped twice and bowed deeply, and thought, “ _I hope things stay like this forever.”_  
When they walked away from the shrine, Oikawa insisted they buy good luck charms for the new year. Iwaizumi had forked over the money for two small, silky bags with prayers inside of them- “Success” for Oikawa and “Luck” for Iwaizumi. He had, unbeknownst to Oikawa, purchased a third one for “Love”, as ridiculous as he felt sneaking it in with the other two.  
Oikawa slipped his hand back into Iwaizumi’s, and they began their walk back home. In his other hand he held his “Success” talisman, and his face was bright as he chirped away. Iwaizumi mostly listened, mind drifting off occasionally as he nodded along to Oikawa’s stories.  
“Hey, Iwa-chan, are you even listening to me?” Oikawa mock-grumbled, pulling his hand from Iwaizumi’s to put it on his hip. He walked a few steps down, so Iwaizumi had to look down at him.  
“Yeah, yeah,” Iwaizumi said, following Oikawa down the stairs. “Be careful, Oikawa, the stairs are slippery.” He was about to call out to Oikawa to wait for him when it happened.  
Oikawa’s talisman slipped from his hand, and Oikawa whirled around, making a grab for it before it could get wet. While his hand wrapped around the small pouch, his body lurched forward, off balance.  
Iwaizumi lunged to catch him, but it was too late. His fingers brushed against the fabric of Oikawa’s jacket and clenched around nothing as Oikawa fell, hitting his head against the snowy stairs.  
Iwaizumi rushed over to Oikawa, taking the stairs quickly but carefully. He felt his heart hammer in his throat as he leaned over Oikawa, scared to move him lest he make it worse. He was breathing, but he had passed out. Iwaizumi frantically pulled out his phone and dialed 119, nearly hysterical as he explained to the dispatcher what had happened. As the woman on the phone assured him that an ambulance was on its way, Iwaizumi clenched Oikawa’s hand, trying to bring some warmth into Oikawa’s fingers. When the lady hung up, he leaned back on the stairs, hot tears nearly spilling over as he watched Oikawa’s prone form lie immobile on the stairs, feeling utterly and ridiculously useless.

Oikawa woke up in the ambulance, blinking at Iwaizumi.  
“How much did I drink? I have the worst hangover ever,” Oikawa groaned. “Why didn’t you stop me, Iwa-chan?”  
Iwaizumi nearly cried tears of joy. He was going to kill Oikawa.

After a thorough lecture on being careful on stairs, many long hours at the hospital, and an astounding hospital bill, Oikawa was cleared to go home. He had a concussion, and would feel dizzy and nauseous for a while. He was to avoid electronics and working his brain too hard, whether that meant studying or physical activity. Oikawa grumbled at that one, but stopped as soon as he felt the full force of Iwaizumi’s glare on his back. They left the hospital, Iwaizumi supporting Oikawa’s weight as he called a taxi to take them home.  
“So, that’s not how I planned to spend New Years,” Oikawa said, tone light but Iwaizumi could see how upset Oikawa was that the day he had carefully planned had gone to shit. Iwaizumi himself was still having difficulty breathing, the moment where Oikawa slipped through his fingers playing over and over again.  
“I’m sorry,” Iwaizumi said at last. He couldn’t meet Oikawa’s gaze. It was his fault, after all, that Oikawa would be out of volleyball for a while. “If I had caught you none of this would have happened.”  
Oikawa stared at Iwaizumi, dumbfounded. “Iwa-chan, are you an idiot?” Iwaizumi just glared at Oikawa, but he couldn’t help the hot rush of embarrassment and tried to swallow around the ball in his throat. “I was the one that fell. I know you have good reflexes but you aren’t Spiderman. There’s no way you could have caught me. I was the one that wasn’t careful enough.” Before Iwaizumi could protest, Oikawa pressed his lips gently against Iwaizumi’s. It was very effective in getting Iwaizumi to shut up.  
Once Oikawa had pulled away, he smiled affectionately at Iwaizumi, which after all this time still made his heart pound in his chest. “Iwa-chan, I will always, not matter what, trust you to catch me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay not gonna lie i was going to make this SUPER angsty but then i didn't because i love these two and i don't want anything bad to happen to them ;-; 
> 
> thank you for reading!!!! let me know in the comments what you thought (the good/the bad/the ugly)???  
> find me on tumblr at thighchi.tumblr.com :)

**Author's Note:**

> heh..happy ending????????  
> or not!!!!!!!;)  
> stay tuned for the last bit folks
> 
> find me on tumblr at thighchi.tumblr.com


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